Steve Alexander

Basketball Daily Dose

Dose: Holy Vucevic!

I had plans on getting up at the crack of dawn and cranking out this Daily Dose by 9 a.m., but it didn’t happen. In any case, here’s what went down on New Year’s Eve in the Association.

Jameer Nelson (hip) and Gustavo Ayon (thigh) were out for the Magic last night, but Nikola Vucevic went off for 20 points and a franchise record 29 rebounds in an overtime loss to the Heat. I had him in a couple weekly lineups and am sitting in first place thanks to Vucevic’s strong play this season. Arron Afflalo went off for 28 points and a full stat line, and J.J. Redick had 23 points, five 3-pointers and five assists off the Magic bench. Hedo Turkoglu had nine points, eight assists and a 3-pointer for the Magic, and is worth a pick up in most leagues, although I imagine he’ll struggle with his shot all year. With Ayon out, Andrew Nicholson drew the start and had 10 points in 17 minutes. He’s a rookie and will continue to have some good and bad nights as long as Ayon and Glen Davis (shoulder) are out. LeBron James had 38 points and another fat stat line for the Heat, who should have been able to manhandle this Magic team without overtime.

Gerald Wallace wins the award for most annoying fantasy presence to end the year, as his guarantee to play last night ended with another DNP due to a lingering knee injury. Don’t say you’re “definitely” going to play, unless you’re definitely going to play. I’m not going to complain too much though, as I’m going against Crash in my two most important leagues. One of those is League Freak, the league started by Rick Kamla, and I appreciated hearing him chatter about me on the Fantasy Insider show yesterday, which you can watch here, in the pickup/drop segment.

The Nets were a disaster last night and got blown out by the Spurs, as Deron Williams hit just 3-of-11 shots and the starters were benched for much of the second half in an ugly loss. MarShon Brooks welcomed the absence of Avery Johnson with 16 points in garbage time, and is worth keeping an eye on now that Johnson is no longer calling the shots in Brooklyn.

Josh Smith returned for the Hawks from a one-game absence with a hip injury and you have to give the guy credit. If he’s banged up, chances are he’s going to play. Hopefully you started him in your weekly leagues, as he went off for 17 points, four blocks and two 3-pointers despite sitting out for most of the fourth quarter in a lopsided loss. Lou Williams had 21 points and three 3-pointers on 9-of-16 shooting, while Al Horford was stellar with 18 points and 13 boards with the same shooting line as the Hawks were blown out by the Rockets.

Rudy Gay was another New Year’s Eve buzzkill after hitting just 3-of-17 shots and ruining field goal percentage for the week for many fantasy owners. He’ll bounce back, but overcoming that shooting line is going to be tough. Mike Conley hit just 3-of-9 shots for nine points last night and shot 34 percent in December. He’s a better player than that and should be a buy-low target in all leagues.

George Hill was another disappointment on Monday, as he was expected to play through his groin injury and then didn’t suit up. D.J. Augustin started in his place and had 17 points, six dimes and four 3-pointers, and could be ready to take on a bigger role for the Pacers if Hill’s groin keeps him out for a few games. Roy Hibbert was dreadful again after hitting just 3-of-11 shots, but at least had six boards and four blocks. If he ever starts making shots, he’s going to be a beast.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was another injury victim for the Bobcats due to being hit in the eye on Saturday and sat out last night. He’s day-to-day. Jeff Adrien went off with nine points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in 23 minutes last night, but should return to obscurity once MKG is back.

Joakim Noah and Nate Robinson were awful for the Bulls, and are big reasons the Bobcats were able to snap their 18-game losing streak last night. Noah had two points, four boards and two blocks, while Nate hit just 2-of-11 shots in a start for dinged up Kirk Hinrich (knee). Both players will bounce back in their next one, and any time Hinrich is out, Robinson is must-start material.

Derrick Rose isn’t “anywhere close” to playing, according to coach Tom Thibodeau, which falls in line with what I’ve been saying about Rose lately. Despite the fact I recently bought matching pairs of D-Rose Adidas kicks for my five-year-old son and I, the fact of the matter is I don’t think he’ll play in more than 20 games this season.

I had plans on getting up at the crack of dawn and cranking out this Daily Dose by 9 a.m., but it didn’t happen. In any case, here’s what went down on New Year’s Eve in the Association.

Jameer Nelson (hip) and Gustavo Ayon (thigh) were out for the Magic last night, but Nikola Vucevic went off for 20 points and a franchise record 29 rebounds in an overtime loss to the Heat. I had him in a couple weekly lineups and am sitting in first place thanks to Vucevic’s strong play this season. Arron Afflalo went off for 28 points and a full stat line, and J.J. Redick had 23 points, five 3-pointers and five assists off the Magic bench. Hedo Turkoglu had nine points, eight assists and a 3-pointer for the Magic, and is worth a pick up in most leagues, although I imagine he’ll struggle with his shot all year. With Ayon out, Andrew Nicholson drew the start and had 10 points in 17 minutes. He’s a rookie and will continue to have some good and bad nights as long as Ayon and Glen Davis (shoulder) are out. LeBron James had 38 points and another fat stat line for the Heat, who should have been able to manhandle this Magic team without overtime.

Gerald Wallace wins the award for most annoying fantasy presence to end the year, as his guarantee to play last night ended with another DNP due to a lingering knee injury. Don’t say you’re “definitely” going to play, unless you’re definitely going to play. I’m not going to complain too much though, as I’m going against Crash in my two most important leagues. One of those is League Freak, the league started by Rick Kamla, and I appreciated hearing him chatter about me on the Fantasy Insider show yesterday, which you can watch here, in the pickup/drop segment.

The Nets were a disaster last night and got blown out by the Spurs, as Deron Williams hit just 3-of-11 shots and the starters were benched for much of the second half in an ugly loss. MarShon Brooks welcomed the absence of Avery Johnson with 16 points in garbage time, and is worth keeping an eye on now that Johnson is no longer calling the shots in Brooklyn.

Josh Smith returned for the Hawks from a one-game absence with a hip injury and you have to give the guy credit. If he’s banged up, chances are he’s going to play. Hopefully you started him in your weekly leagues, as he went off for 17 points, four blocks and two 3-pointers despite sitting out for most of the fourth quarter in a lopsided loss. Lou Williams had 21 points and three 3-pointers on 9-of-16 shooting, while Al Horford was stellar with 18 points and 13 boards with the same shooting line as the Hawks were blown out by the Rockets.

Rudy Gay was another New Year’s Eve buzzkill after hitting just 3-of-17 shots and ruining field goal percentage for the week for many fantasy owners. He’ll bounce back, but overcoming that shooting line is going to be tough. Mike Conley hit just 3-of-9 shots for nine points last night and shot 34 percent in December. He’s a better player than that and should be a buy-low target in all leagues.

George Hill was another disappointment on Monday, as he was expected to play through his groin injury and then didn’t suit up. D.J. Augustin started in his place and had 17 points, six dimes and four 3-pointers, and could be ready to take on a bigger role for the Pacers if Hill’s groin keeps him out for a few games. Roy Hibbert was dreadful again after hitting just 3-of-11 shots, but at least had six boards and four blocks. If he ever starts making shots, he’s going to be a beast.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was another injury victim for the Bobcats due to being hit in the eye on Saturday and sat out last night. He’s day-to-day. Jeff Adrien went off with nine points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in 23 minutes last night, but should return to obscurity once MKG is back.

Joakim Noah and Nate Robinson were awful for the Bulls, and are big reasons the Bobcats were able to snap their 18-game losing streak last night. Noah had two points, four boards and two blocks, while Nate hit just 2-of-11 shots in a start for dinged up Kirk Hinrich (knee). Both players will bounce back in their next one, and any time Hinrich is out, Robinson is must-start material.

Derrick Rose isn’t “anywhere close” to playing, according to coach Tom Thibodeau, which falls in line with what I’ve been saying about Rose lately. Despite the fact I recently bought matching pairs of D-Rose Adidas kicks for my five-year-old son and I, the fact of the matter is I don’t think he’ll play in more than 20 games this season.

Carmelo Anthony practiced on Monday and is questionable for Tuesday’s game against the Blazers. He’s missed two in a row with his balky knee, but because he practiced on Monday, my guess is he’ll play tonight. Amare Stoudemire should make his debut tonight, and should be owned in all leagues before it happens. Don’t expect to see the “old Amare,” but for a guy you likely picked up off the waiver wire, he should be pretty solid.

Rodney Stuckey is iffy for tonight’s game with an ankle injury, and if he’s out, I would imagine Will Bynum will have another big game for the Pistons, although Bynum was quiet in his last game.

Ricky Rubio is bringing me a ton of questions on Twitter due to his lingering knee and back problems, along with the fact that Alexey Shved, J.J. Barea and Luke Ridnour are all good basketball players. Those of you who waited on Rubio have to be disappointed with his lack of production, injuries, and competition for minutes. I have basically said he can be dropped for Isaiah Thomas. It’s already January and we, as fantasy owners, can’t wait forever for guys like Rubio and Ersan Ilyasova to get their act together. Kevin Love is a different story, as I plan on going down with the ship with him, but I just don’t see Rubio ever being mobile and relevant enough this season to make him a must-start fantasy player. That team is too deep at guard and I’m just thankful I’m not sitting on Rubio in any of my 11 leagues. I do, however, own Love in my 30-team league, and that has been a disaster. My ship is sinking. As for Rubio, I’m not telling you to flat-out drop him, but if you have been feeling the urge and have your eye on a hot free agent, you have to think about whether he’s worth hanging onto or not. Next year is a different story, but guys coming off knee surgery like he and Derrick Rose had don’t normally go all Adrian Peterson on us, at least until the following season.

Wesley Matthews is supposedly going to play tonight and I put him in my lineup in a weekly league that I’m currently winning. Hopefully he makes it through all four games this week, despite his lingering hip injury.

Anderson Varejao is iffy for the week with his knee injury, but reportedly looked good in Monday’s practice. If you’re in a weekly league, I hope you benched him, and owners in daily leagues should keep a close eye on Rotoworld for his status on Wednesday.

Marcus Thornton is day-to-day with his sprained ankle and won’t play on Tuesday against the Pistons. I wouldn’t be surprised if he misses the whole week with his injury, but I’m going to hold onto him for now. And that’s just one more reason that Isaiah Thomas should be owned and started in all leagues right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if Thomas has the best week of his career this week, and the Kings go four times. Tyreke Evans (knee) and Aaron Brooks (ankle) are also injured and may not play, meaning Thomas should go nuts this week. As for Evans, I’m getting a lot of “should I cut him?” questions, and the answer is, ‘it depends.’ He’s getting a second opinion on his bad knee and the Kings’ rotation is already a mess. I don’t own Tyreke anywhere, but if I had him in a daily league, my impatient self would have probably already dropped him. I’m not telling you to do the same in every situation, but if you think you’ll sleep better at night without him on your team, you have to think about letting go.

Washington’s Jordan Crawford sounds like a go for Tuesday’s game against the Mavericks, so get him in your lineup if you can. He missed his last game with a sprained ankle.

There are six NBA games tonight and you can catch the Clippers and Nuggets on NBA TV at 9 p.m.

Steve "Dr. A" Alexander is the senior editor for the NBA for Rotoworld.com and a contributor to NBCSports.com. The 2017-18 NBA season marks (at least) his 16th year of covering fantasy hoops for Rotoworld. Follow him on Twitter - @Docktora.Email :Steve Alexander